Some Secrets Are Best Left Kept
by Dragons' Song
Summary: New chapter up. The title has nothing to do with the chapter, but I like the way it sounds. For those who don't know, this is a post-meteor Reno fic with no romance involved. Enjoy.
1. The Boy Who Cried Wolf

Some secrets are best left kept

Disclaimer: Reno, Cid, Shera, Cloud, Tifa…hm…let's just list the people that DO belong to me. Jamie Highwind and Kina Strife belong to me. Everybody else belongs to Square. 

Oh yeah, please review at the end, but be nice. If you aren't, I might have to come after you with my mag-rod...

Prologue

After Meteor and the destruction of Shinra, the higher executives, excluding Reeve, had been hunted down and persecuted for their crimes. Wanted most of all, were the Turks, for the mass murder and other things they'd done. A large reward had been offered to anyone who could bring in the Turks. To keep away notice, the three had split, and gone their separate ways. As of late, however, only Reno remained free. . . 

Seven years later. . . 

It was a cold, snowy night in the woodlands around Nibelheim. Reno poked his rapidly dying fire with a stick, in hopes to keep it alive a little longer. Finally, the tiny flames died completely. Reno cursed loudly and threw down the stick. That had been the only dry wood for miles and he didn't have any materia anymore. With no fire, various monsters would no doubt try to attack. Reno shivered violently and drew his tattered coat around him. 

Suddenly, a piercing howl split the silence, followed by two others. Reno looked around. That had to be a small pack of Nibel wolves; small, but deadly. Out of instinct, Reno checked his weapons. Great. He had to bullets and enough voltage in his nightstick to deliver one more charge. It would have to do. Making sure his gun and nightstick were in easily reached places, he waited for the beasts. He didn't have to wait long. 

Soon, the three wolves bounded into the small clearing. The alpha snarled and crouched to leap. He never made the jump. Reno fired his gun. His precision aim buried a bullet in the wolf's head. His mate howled in grief, and turned on Reno. This one faster, she actually leapt into the air. Reno fired the gun again, and a bullet buried itself into the female's heart. The momentum carried the beast the full length of its leap, and it landed heavily on Reno, pushing him into the snow.

While he struggled to get the dead animal off of him, the third wolf darted in swiped at Reno's stomach. The long claws tore at the soft skin, leaving long, deep gashes. Having pushed the dead wolf off of him, he swung his nightstick wildly. It missed, and the wolf tore at his leg. He swung again, and the tip collided with the beast's head, discharging 10,000 volts into its brain. It fell, writhing as tongues of lightning streaked across its body. 

Reno lay back heavily, the blood from his wounds soaking his clothes. He needed help, and fast. He staggered to his feet, leaning on a tree for support. He felt light headed and dizzy, due to lack of blood, but started anyway. The closest town was Nibelheim. He staggered through the forest, fighting off unconsciousness the whole way. Finally, just as the first house came in view, he lost the battle, and sank into the snow, and lay, unmoving. 

Author's Note: Yeah, I know the prologue sucks, so don't tell me. If I get some good reviews, I'll put up the next chapter. Please tell me what you think! Be nice! I mean, give me a break. I'm a thirteen year old kid who didn't write until she joined FF.Net. So, Review! Bye.

-Reno


	2. Wanted, Dead or Alive...or Maybe Just De...

Some Secrets Are Best Left Kept Part 2

Disclaimer: Kina Strife and Jamie Highwind are the only two characters that belong to me. Okay? Good. 

Kina Strife ran down the hallway and into her parent's bedroom. Jumping up and down on her sleeping father, she screamed, "Mommymommymommy! It snowed again last night! Can me and Jamie play in the snow? Pleeeeeease?"

Tifa grinned at her small daughter. "I guess. Ask the Highwinds if they want to come for lunch today. Be careful."

Kina whooped and ran out the door. After changing, she ran to the inn, where the visiting Highwinds were staying. Jamie met her at the door. Together, they ran back to Kina's house to have a snowball fight in the backyard. After a while, they flopped into the snow, tired and worn out. As they lay there, Kina's wandering hand found something stiff and icy under the snow. She shrieked loudly, but not loud enough to be heard in the Strife household. Jamie jumped, startled slightly. "What? Whassa matter?" She crawled over to where Kina was. Together, they dug away a little of the snow. After a while, a ragged patch of frozen blue cloth was uncovered. 

They dug a little more, and a shock of red hair was revealed. The girls also saw that some of the snow was red. They prodded the shape. It moaned softly and shifted slightly. The girls jumped back, not expecting that. However, the thing was still once more. The girls shrugged and pushed away the rest of the snow. The thing was really a tall thin man. The two struggled to roll him over, and finally succeeded. They gasped at the blood covering his body and the horrible wounds on his leg and stomach. 

They both thought he looked familiar, but didn't remember why. The two turned to look at each other. And then the proverbial light bulb went on over Jamie's head. "Kina! You know those pictures in the middle of town?"

Kina thought for a minute. "I think so. You mean that scary man that the police want?"

Jamie nodded. "Yeah. You know what? This might be the person!"

Kina gasped. She knew what that one and the four zeros after it meant. "Jamie! We could be rich! Let's go tell our parents!" 

The two little girls ran off in the direction of the Strife household. 

Tifa, Cloud, Cid, and Shera were just sitting down to lunch when their daughters burst in. "Mommy!" Jamie yelled, "There's a man in the snow!"

"Yeah!" Kina piped in. "It's the man from those posters!"

Tifa jumped to her feet. "What?!"

Kina slowly repeated herself. Tifa's eyes grew stormy. 

"Cloud," she said tensely," get your sword. Cid, the Venus Gospel. Shera and I will go check things out. " Kina and Jamie led Tifa and Shera out into the back yard.

Reno watched passively as the two girls ran away. All of their poking and prodding had woken him up. He tried to sit up and hissed angrily as knives of pain stabbed his abdomen. He looked down at his stomach and could not remember for the life of him why there was a big, gaping hole in his stomach. All he remembered was sitting in the woods when wolves attacked him.... He also saw a large wound in his leg. Fortunately, it missed his artery, or he would have been quite dead by now. 

He'd watched through slit eyes as the girls talked to each other. There was no mistaking that spiky blonde hair. It was Strife's brat. And, if his instincts were right, then Tifa would probably be charging out any minute. 

He looked around for a possible hiding spot. The only likely spot was a small tree house about ten feet away. He decided that the only possible way to move would be to shove him through the snow. So he did, and dragged his sore body the ten feet to the tree house. 

It was not a particularly large tree, but in Reno's state the climb would be nearly impossible. Part of Turk training was how to ignore pain, but he was never particularly good at that. He gritted his teeth and put his hands on the first rung of the tree house ladder. Trying to ignore the pain, he hauled himself up until he could place his good leg on the bottom rung. 

First, he put one hand on the next rung, then his leg, and then the other hand. The going was slow and painful, but he pulled his wounded leg into the tree house just as the two brats and their mothers ran out the back door. He crawled as far back into the tree house as he could and fell asleep on a pillow in the corner.

Tifa and Shera looked around the indentation in the snow. It was a man, all right, but who ever it had been was gone now. There were no footprints; only a path to the tree house, which Tifa assumed had been made by the girls. 

"He was here a minute ago!" Kina wailed. 

Tifa looked at the girl. "I'm sure there was, sweetie, but not anymore. Tell you what. You and Jamie play in the tree house while Dad and I look around to see if we can find him. You too, Jamie."

The two girls sulked and walked dejectedly to their tree house. As soon as they climbed up, Kina shut and bolted the door. She turned to flop down on one of the cushions they had stashed up there. Trouble was, someone was already on it.

A/N- Okay. I think that chapter kind of sucked, but I just got back from a three week vacation, so my brain is not functioning properly. Next chapter will be up as soon as I get over my writer's block. Ciao.

~Reno


	3. Do unto to others...then run

Some Secrets are Best Left Kept  
  
A/N Yes! I finally updated this. I had no motivation, but it came back from its extremely long vacation. To those who have been waiting, her it is: the Third chapter…  
  
  
  
Recap: Reno is half dead in the snow and two kids find him. He sneaks into their tree  
  
house and they find him. Here goes…  
  
Kina shrieked in surprise. Jamie, who had inherited much from her father, screamed out words that would have made Cid Highwind blush. Reno, who had been dozing on a pillow, woke suddenly, his old training allowing him to be instantly alert. He honestly didn't blame the brats for screaming, but he was worried that someone might hear.  
  
Using his longer reach to his full advantage, he snatched Jamie and clamped his hand over her mouth. "Quiet!" he hissed. Suddenly, something clunked Reno on the head, nearly knocking him out. He looked up to see the Strife brat brandishing a wooden sword that looked suspiciously like the Ultima weapon.  
  
"Let her go!" The girl swung the sword again, hitting a dizzy Reno a second time, causing him to release his hold on the Highwind child. His eyes refused to stay in one spot and his head fell strangely light. However, he refused to pass out. He slid himself across the small floor of the tree house and blocked the door, and any chance of escape.  
  
He scratched his head. Reno knew that these kids could help him, but he didn't know how. He had been an only child as far as he could tell, as his earliest memories were from an orphanage. He had never been one to watch out for others, preferring to dish out punishment and run. As an adult, he had never had kids on purpose, although he was sure that there were tons of kids walking around with his genes. In the slums, if you got pregnant, that was it. Even if you had enough money for abortion, there was no one to do it.  
  
"Uh, I was wondering if you could do me a favor."  
  
Jamie, the bolder of the two, looked at Reno skeptically. "Why? If I told Mommy that you were in our tree house, then we could get lots of money."  
  
Reno chuckled. The kid was about seven and already had gil signs in her eyes. However, he could play off of that. "Well, I got messed up really bad by some wolves. If I don't get help, then I could die. If I die, then you can't get the money."  
  
Kina looked at Jamie. "He has a point. I think Mom has some medicine. I can't reach though. If I asked Mom to, then-"  
  
Reno stopped her mid-sentence. "No. You can't tell your Mom, otherwise, she'll kill me."  
  
Kina looked surprised. "Why?"  
  
Jamie stuck her foot in the door, so to speak. "My dad says that you dropped a plate on lots of people and they all died, and Mrs. Strife doesn't like that you did that."  
  
Kina looked confused. "Mom dropped a plate once, and it didn't kill anybody. Dad, got a piece of glass in his foot, but that's it."  
  
Reno groaned. He hated having to explain it, but he would have to in order to get the trust of these kids. "Well, I used to live in a city called Midgar. Your mom lived there too, in a place called Sector Seven. Now, um, Midgar was like a, uh, a floating pizza. There were eight pieces, so to speak. There were big thick poles holding this pizza in the air. If you destroyed the pole, then that 'piece' would fall, killing everybody who lived under and on it. One day, my boss told me to make Sector Seven fall down. So I did. Your mom lost almost everything. That's why she doesn't like me."  
  
Both kids nodded. However, Jamie spoke up. "I think you're a fucking asshole."  
  
Reno stared at this snip of a girl cussing him out. "Uh, that kinda wasn't the answer I expected."  
  
The little girl shrugged. "We'll help you. But understand, we're only doing it for money."  
  
Reno was surprised at how much the girl sounded like him. "Yeah, whatever, just get me some material or somethin'."  
  
He unblocked the door and the two girl climbed down and left.  
  
  
  
A/N I didn't like that chapter, but it has to stay because it is furthering the plot. And note that Jamie is kind of smarter, while Kina is kind of stupid. (You can tell I dislike Cloud.) Also, please remember, Jamie is the daughter of Cid Highwind, so expect her to be foul-mouthed. So, with that said, see ya. 


End file.
